Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer Black Sale-$1,744.99!
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Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer Black Sale-$1,744.99!
Compare & Purchase Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer Black at Amazon by clicking here! List Price: $1,899.99 Amazon Price: $1,744.99 |
Sony BDP-CX7000ES 400 Blu-ray Disc Mega Changer Black Description:
Store, access and enjoy up 400 discs with Sony’s premium Blu-ray Disc MegaChanger, the BDP-CX7000ES. A user-friendly on-screen interface makes it easy to sort and search by title, genre, cast and more, to quickly find the movie, TV show or album you’re looking for.
- Amazon Sales Rank: #13217 in Consumer Electronics
- Color: Black
- Brand: Sony
- Model: BDP-CX7000ES
- Released on: 2009-07-31
- Dimensions: 9.50″ h x 17.00″ w x 21.90″ l, 31.30 pounds
Features
- Organize & play 400 Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs, and CDs
- Control with audio / video installation systems via RS-232
- Experience Full HD 1080p/24p video output
- Converts DVD video to near HD quality via HDMI
- Dolby TrueHD and dts -HD decoding/bitstream output
Customer Reviews:
Great way to consolidate your Blu-ray/DVD collection
The Sony “mega changer” is a unique product, capable of storing a medium-sized disc collection in a single, convenient device.
A wide range of disc types are supported in addition to Blu-ray, including conventional DVDs and audio CDs. Note that DVD-Audio, HD-DVD and SACD are *not* supported.
The build quality is first rate, typical of a Sony “ES” product. It weighs over 30 pounds and seems like it’s built to last a while. It hooks up easily using a single HDMI cable (assuming what you’re connecting to accepts this type of input). If you’re using Sony gear, you can control the “mega changer” using a common remote and Sony’s “Bravia Sync” protocol. For older equipment, there are 2 and 7 channel analog outputs, as well as digital coax. If you use high-end AV control system (such as Crestron), there are RS-232 inputs as well. The 5-year warranty is also a good touch.
In terms of sound and picture quality, I’d rate it as excellent. I have a variety of other high-end disc players, and in no case could I see or hear differences on the Sony. DVDs are upscaled for better performance, and the unit supports 24p True Cinema, BD-Live and so on. It supports all the latest surround audio formats and video features, and Sony has a built-in network connection supporting easy firmware updating. While I haven’t seen a specific commitment from Sony to support future standards, at least the infrastructure is there if they choose to do so.
The unit also features a built-in Ethernet port that can connect to the Gracenote service to retrieve album art and disc cover graphics. This is a nice touch, saving you from having to manually enter disc information most of the time. Unfortunately, the graphics are sometimes low resolution and on a small display, they can be difficult to see clearly. Also, on prior generations of this product, Sony included a way to connect a computer keyboard so you could easily edit disc information. This feature has been dropped on the BDP-CX7000ES…so long as you’re Ethernet connected and storing discs that can be found in the Gracenote service, this isn’t a big deal - but if (for instance) you tend to burn your own discs and want to edit titles, it can be quite a chore doing it without a keyboard. Some complain about the lack of WiFi, but you can always use a wireless Ethernet bridge to eliminate the need for any cables (this is how I have mine connected, and it works fine).
Finding discs is always a challenge with units like this, and so Sony provides a variety of ways your collection can be indexed. It’s possible to search by title, genre, rating - even director and cast member.
The unit can be somewhat slow loading and unloading discs, which I guess is a function of the size of the carousel. It can take 30 seconds to unload a disc, spin the unit to the desired slot, then load the chosen disc.
There’s also a slot that can be used to play a single disc without loading it into the unit. This is a good idea, but as I’ve kept my single disc player connected to my system, I don’t use the Sony for this type of disc. Similarly, there’s a USB port for connecting various types of media to the unit (for instance, special BD-Live content, or photos, etc). So far, I haven’t found a compelling use of this feature since it duplicates capabilities I have on other devices.
One problem I’ve had with the unit is that it seems sensitive to being moved - some of the discs seemed to move out of their slots just by sliding the device on its shelf. It seems important to not move the unit once its loaded with discs.
Although this is a fine unit overall, there are a few other areas that could use improvement:
1. WiFi should be built-in…I shouldn’t need to buy an outboard Ethernet bridge to connect wirelessly.
2. The Gracenote service is still immature, mislabling about 10-20% of all discs.
3. Would be nice to have built-in support for Amazon’s video on demand (or Netflix).
4. Takes a long time to setup initially if you have lots of discs. A wireless keyboard would be a big help.
5. The overall software interface is a bit clumsy…would be nice if it was easier to simply connect the device (over that USB channel?) to a Windows Media Center or iTunes.
6. It runs a bit hot in an enclosed cabinet and tends to generate audible fan noise.
7. Would be nice to have a way to link multiple units for those having more than 400 discs. While you can certainly connect multiple units to your system, each acts independently - without a coordinated index, you need to remember which discs are in which player.
Still, in spite of these shortcomings, I think this is a great product and I give it a solid four stars. It would probably be five stars for picture and sound quality, five stars for construction quality, and three stars for usability and software design.
Fatally flawed
I’m a Sony fanboi, but this is the weakest Sony product in over a decade and there’s no reason for it. For the want of a horse a kingdom is lost… Sorry.
It plays disks wonderfully but there’s no reason to have a changer so limited. Gracenote supplies disk information but it’s just not sufficient unless you are only watching mainstream movies. If you watch indies or special-interest movies, you have to enter the information by the remote, which is data-entry hell. For over a decade Sony has had a keyboard input. This is a step back from the 400-DVD player. And the ES non-HDMI player before that. And the 300 DVD player. And the 200 CD player… All of which I’ve owned and all of which were more user friendly.
If iTunes had the ability to enter DVD information, that would be okay. Pop the DVD into my Mac, label it, and then into the changer. I’ll do data-entry hell for Blu-ray. It would be an extra step but it would be a service to the community. It’s simple with a CD to enter information with iTunes, but the latest iTunes doesn’t let you do it with a DVD. There is I think an SDK [...] to let you write a program to do it, but my CS degree is 30 years out of date, and why should I have to? A keyboard input is simply not that hard to do.
Also it crashes. I don’t use it that much for the above reasons (I bought one the used market another 400-DVD changer AFTER I bought this) but perhaps a quarter of the time I have to turn it off because it’s stuck. I don’t have to unplug it, or even lever myself out of the chair–the remote’s power button will do it. But it’s a problem. A software update can fix this though. But it can’t fix the lack of a keyboard input.
The specs are wonderful. It has a lovely interface, like the latest Sony receivers (which I have and love). But the lack of a keyboard input means that I’d suggest passing on this unless you do nothing but mainstream movies.
This is the first Sony product that I regret having bought.
Lacking in a major way
How this unit be almost $2000 and not be able to play a simple mp3 encoded file? Sony is going backwards in their product development.
I currently own two 400 disc CD mega changers from Sony and one of them will play mp3 files. With so many people downloading heir music and compiling their own play lists in this format it is a no brainer any player have the capability to play them.
From the Manufacturer
From the Manufacturer (September 6, 2009)
Store, access and enjoy up to 400 discs with Sony’s premium Blu-ray Disc MegaChanger, the BDP-CX7000ES. A user-friendly on-screen interface makes it easy to sort and search by title, genre, cast and more, to quickly find the movie, TV show or album you’re looking for.
Organize your disc library and enjoy quick and easy access to 400 Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs and CDs. Click to enlarge. |
Store and play 400 Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs, and CDs
The Sony BDP-CX7000ES Blu-ray Disc MegaChanger can store and play 400 Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs and CDs, allowing you to free up valuable shelf space and relocate all your discs to one convenient, easy-to-access location.
Super Bit Mapping and HD Reality Enhancement
Super Bit Mapping upsteps the standard 8-bit Blu-ray Disc or DVD video signal to 14 bits, providing extremely smooth video gradation, even on 8-bit television panels. HD Reality Enhancement sharpens edges for super-crisp video.
Downloads and displays jacket art, title, and other metadata
The Sony BDP-CX7000ES Blu-ray Disc MegaChanger can take advantage of internet connectivity to download movie metadata such as jacket art, title, genre and cast information from the Gracenote service, and displays it in an intuitive, easy-to-navigate on-screen display.
Sort and search your discs by title, genre, and more
Enjoy quick and easy navigation of your Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs and CDs with the ability to search and sort by title, genre, director, cast, and more from your remote control.
RS-232 Port
The CX7000ES’s built-in RS-232 port allows the MegaChanger to be managed by audio/video control systems for full integration into a custom installed audio/video system.
Fully-featured Blu-ray Disc player
In addition to storing and playing up to 400 discs, the BDP-CX7000ES offers all the capabilities of a fully-featured Blu-ray Disc player, including Full HD 1080p video output, HD audio support, BD-Live access, and the ability to upscale standard DVDs to near HD quality over an HDMI connection.
Find your movies fast–search by jacket art, title, director, cast, genre and more. |
Enjoy ultra-realistic images and phenomenal color reproduction. |
7.1 channel analog output
7.1 channel analog output provides connectivity to older receivers, making the player compatible with many existing audio system.
Rental slot for quick loading and unloading
Quickly insert and start watching a movie right away with the dedicated rental slot. In addition, a button on the player gives you one-touch access to the rental slot for quick loading or ejecting.
Full HD 1080p video output
Full HD 1080p video output provides high-resolution HD images so you can take full advantage of your HDTV and the detail of Blu-ray Disc video content. Blu-ray Disc, DVD and CD compatibility lets you play your favorite Blu-ray Disc movies, DVDs, and audio CDs.
DVD Upscaling via HDMI
DVD upscaling via HDMI makes your existing standard DVDs look better on your HDTV by upscaling them to near HD quality via HDMI connection.
BD-Live technology
BD-Live technology brings you the next generation of interactivity, allowing you to download and stream bonus content, such as additional scenes, shorts, trailers, movie-based games, and more. (BD-Live enabled Blu-ray Disc, USB flash memory, and Internet connection are required.)
Support for enhanced audio formats from Dolby and dts
The BDP-CX7000ES Blu-ray Disc player supports both internal decoding and bitstream output of enhanced audio codecs, including Dolby TrueHD and dts-HD Master Audio. These high definition audio formats delivers “lossless” surround sounds with 7.1 channels of discrete audio that is bit-for-bit identical to the master studio recording, allowing you to enjoy uncompromised sound from the comfort of your living room.
Download and stream bonus content such as additional scenes, shorts, movie-based games, trailers and more. |
Support for internal decoding and bitstream output of enhanced audio codecs, including Dolby TrueHD and dts-HD Master Audio. |
Product updates
Product software upgrades can be easily downloaded and installed on the CX7000ES through your internet connection.
xross media bar
xross media bar user interface makes it simple and intuitive to browse and search for movies, as well as navigate menus, controls, and user settings.
Ethernet port
Ethernet port provides connectivity to a home broadband connection for network updates, disc metadata downloads, and BD-Live access.
Built-in USB port
Built-in USB port enables you to connect a portable USB storage device (sold separately) for additional storage capacity and lets you take advantage of specially created content from BD-Live with compatible Blu-ray Disc media.
BRAVIA Sync
BRAVIA Sync capability utilizes the HDMI CEC function easily turn on and control your compatible HDMI-connected components.
Precision Cinema HD Upscale
Precision Cinema HD upscale uses advanced conversion and processing to detect image changes at the pixel level, rather than at the level of whole scan lines. Additionally, separate algorithms are used to process the moving and still parts of an image, resulting in sharp backgrounds with moving objects that are free from motion artifacts.
24p True Cinema
24p True Cinema capable lets you watch films at their intended 24 fps (frames per second)–the way movies are shot and mastered–so you can enjoy more cinematic picture quality.
Bonus View
Bonus View feature provides “picture-in-picture” capability with select Blu-ray Disc titles–useful for viewing director or actor commentary while the movie plays.
Five Year Limited Warranty
The BDP-CX7000ES Blu-ray MegaChanger comes with a five year limited warranty for parts and labor.
Advanced Exchange Program
Under Sony’s Advanced Exchange program, if you experience a problem with your BDP-CX7000ES within 90 days after purchase that is covered under the limited warranty, you may be entitled to receive a new unit at no cost in exchange for your return of the defective unit.
Meets or Exceeds Energy Star 3.0 guidelines for energy efficiency
The Sony BDP-CX7000ES Blu-ray Disc MegaChanger meets or exceeds Energy Star 3.0 requirements.
What’s in the Box
BDP-CX7000ES 400 Disc Blu-ray Disc, DVD and CD MegaChanger, Remote Commander (RM-ADP036), 2 AA Batteries, Instruction Manual, AC Cable, Warranty Card, Product Registration Card
Review from Home Theater Magazine
Review from HomeTheaterMag.com: Sony BDP-CX7000ES
Sony’s foray into the U.S. electronics market began more than 50 years ago when co-founder Akio Morita came to New York to sell a $30 miniature transistor radio. At the time, he attracted the interest of Bulova, a watchmaker with a vast retail network. Bulova offered to buy 100,000 units under one condition—Sony would have to original equipment manufacture (O.E.M.) the radios, and they would be branded and marketed under Bulova’s name. Amazingly, Morita went against his board of directors’ advice and turned down the deal. His 50-year goal was to make the Sony name as popular as Bulova’s. Through the strength of his vision, Sony is now one of the most recognized brands in the world. Read the full review at HomeTheaterMag.com.
> Visit HomeTheaterMag.com for more product news and reviews
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